Bibek Dhital1, Robert Turner1
1Neurophysics, Max Planck Institute for
Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Saxony, Germany
Standard
diffusion sequences require long time to play diffusion gradients, especially
for high b-values. At 7T,this compromises higher intrinsic SNR with shorter
T2 relaxation. We used STEAM sequence
for slice localization and EPI with parallel imaging to acquire diffusion
weighted images. While STEAM-EPI loses half the signal, it still benefits
from a long T1 of the tissue to achieve high b-values: parallel imaging
shortens EPI echo train leading to reduced distortions. STEAM-EPI is thus,
the method of choice for 7 Tesla.
Keywords